TOTK: The Lonely Hero

The Great Sky Island

As Link sprinted through the fields of the island, something caught his ear. It sounded like a squeaky little sigh of some sort. Looking around, he eventually found the source.

A Korok, with its leafy face and wood-like body lay on the ground, a heavy backpack weighing it down.

"This is awful... Where's my friend..."

Surprised that there were Koroks at all on the sky island, he stepped over to the little forest being.

"Hey there. Are you alright?" he asked. The forest child's head perked up in surprise, before turning to look at the Hylian.

"Huh? You can see me? I'm a Korok! One of the children of the forest! I was traveling with my friend... But we got separated."

Raising one of its stubby arms, it pointed to a nearby sky island, separated from the rest of the land mass. The only connection to the rest of it was by two ziplines, one descending to it, and one from it. On the island, Link spotted a small campfire, a small trail of green smoke rising from it.

"My friend is sending up a smoke signal. I can't wait to catch up! I'm so tired though. I can't move..."

Link looked back and forth. He was already jogging to the next shrine. Now this korok was asking him to put time aside to help him. Though he was in a great hurry, he knew it wouldn't be right to leave the little thing be, helpless as it was.

Using Ultrahand, he attached some logs together and a metal hook in the middle. Then, picking up the korok by the backpack, he stuck it to one of the logs. Pushing it forward, he leapt on board just as it began to pick up speed, sliding across the line and onto the island.

"There's my friend!" the korok exclaimed, as the sliding platform came to halt. Its friend, standing by the fire and a small tent, jumped for joy upon seeing him approach.

"You're here!" he cheered.

Detaching the forest child from the log, Link set him down by the fire.

"Take care of yourselves now," he told the two.

"Thanks for reuniting us at last!" the korok's friend said in a similar high-pitched voice, "I'd like to give you something, but here's all I have!"

The woodland being tossed two small korok seeds into Link's hand. The Hylian nodded as a sign of thanks, before pocketing the seeds.

"Bye!" the two koroks called out, as Link grabbed the platform as he placed on the other zipline leading back down to the Great Sky Island. Sliding down, he arrived at the edge of a lake. On the other side lay the next shrine of light.

A sail and mast lay on the ground alongside a few other logs, indicating to Link that this place used to be a dock of some sort. With the wind blowing in the direction of the shrine, he detached the hook from the logs and replaced it with the sail. Lowering it into the water, he leapt onboard just as it began to sail away.

Once he was across, he made his way to the shrine, opening the gateway that led inside before entering.

Appearing before him once more, Rauru began to explain to Link what he had to do.

"Here you are then. Show me your right hand again."

The knight did as he was told, as another green orb of light materialized in the palm of his hand. This time, it bore the symbol of a sword as it was absorbed into the right arm again.

"This is the Fuse ability," the ghost told Link, "It allows you to fuse something nearby to your weapon or shield, thereby enhancing it. Why not pick up that sword just ahead and fuse it to a nearby object. Use Fuse, and receive the blessing from the shrine."